Manifestation: Listening to God Made My Biggest Goal a Reality

ONE. Listen to God. He knows what He’s doing.

He pressed me to write this post. It had been sitting in my drafts for months. I knew the exact angle I was going to take, I just hadn’t started working on it yet. God was pushing me, though. He wanted me to get it done as soon as possible. I couldn’t understand what the rush was, but considering the urgency, I did what He told me to. I completed all my work-work, and spent two hours toying with the post before finally deciding to tackle it fully. I plugged in my headphones and started typing.

TWO. Write the post. Then, re-write the post.

The words poured out onto my Word document. I managed to complete it within an hour, but it wasn’t good enough. I re-read it about 8 times before deciding to re-write it. It had to be perfect for what God wanted me to do next. Write it a few more times in a few different ways. Decide on the final version. Don’t rewrite it again.

It took a little over two days to lock in the final version. The third iteration of the post was much better, but I continued to play around with my perspective; with my angle; with my flow. It was good, but I needed great. I needed great great. After a few more attempts, I had it. It was perfect. This one was magical. God was pleased.

THREE. Save the post. Save it again. save it once more.

Because sometimes you just have to fixate over the small things when the move you’re making is this big. Every step needed to be right. I saved the file three different ways, with three different titles. I searched through my files and selected the one that sounded the best. I renamed it, adding the words ‘FINAL’ to the end. This was the one. This post. This title. This was it.

FOUR. Pitch the post. But before you send it, read it, and read it, and read it again.

I typed an introductory e-mail. Should I say my name first, or just include a snapshot of the post first? What would be more valuable to them? My OCD was flaring at this point.

I typed sentences and erased them in the same second. I re-read my final post and tried not to change another word—this was covered in step two. I spent much time selecting the perfect excerpt from the post; one that was concise yet intriguing. Not too long, but not too short. I found the perfect cliffhanger to entice the editor to open the actual document the post was attached as.

It worked! I can’t believe it worked.

FIVE. Check your e-mail obsessively.

I’m sure God wanted me to leave it alone, but my anxiety wouldn’t allow me to. I refreshed my browser every hour on the hour. After three days of no response, I stopped looking. I figured I’d let God do what He does — if it didn’t get accepted like I felt it would, I knew there would be a good lesson at the end of this.

SIX. Shriek with excitement and call your favorite people.

I could barely get the words out, I was so excited. My pitch was accepted. The Managing Editor loved it and wanted me to send a photo and brief bio. I couldn’t have submitted that quick enough. My writing was good enough for a major media platform dedicated to the empowerment of women of color. How? Why? I didn’t really care, I felt like I made it.

October 16, 2018 was the day my first pitch on a major media outlet was published. That was the moment I actually felt good enough to continue this writing thing. Not because of that validation, but because God showed up again. Because He tested my faith in Him, again, and I passed. I showed Him that no matter how self-doubt manifests in my life, that I will always commit myself to His word and His command. I let Him know that, no matter what, pleasing Him is my focus. And it got returned to me tenfold.

Shortly after this pitch, I submitted another. And another. Until the Managing Editor asked me to come on board as a contributing writer. She regaled at how much she loved everything I submitted. I thanked her for her kindness and her appreciation of my gift. “Girl, your gift was obvious,” she replied.

Obvious. I held onto that. I will probably always hold onto that.

I have been writing leisurely for over ten years, and seriously for three. It wasn’t until recently that I felt comfortable enough calling myself a writer. I wasn’t trained in this work, and I didn’t wanted to disrespect the art in that way. But the more I create, the more I realize that I don't have to be trained to be gifted. God provided me with this masterful craft and I have finally learned to own it — and in doing so, I’ve been stepping out into uncomfortable places to cement myself in this work.

Believing (and trusting) who God says I am, allows His promise to manifest in my life in ways that I could've never imagined. This was God’s plan. Not only did he want to grow me as a writer, He wanted me to reach more people; He was introducing me to a new level of impact — a level I had asked for at the start of this year. After three years of blogging on my own platform, I was finally being paid to do this. God carved out a space for me to serve at a higher level than I had been, and waited for me to own what He gave me so I could use it.

SEVEN. Thank God for coming through yet again. Trust Him again. Listen to Him again. Write and pitch again.

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